The government will introduce laws into parliament this week which will give courts the power to strip dual nationals of their Australian citizenship if convicted of terrorism offences.
The bill is expected to pass through both the house and the Senate before parliament adjourns for the final time this year. The Coalition supports the bill but a war of words has erupted between the government and opposition on the home affairs front after a high court ruling found indefinite detention to be unconstitutional.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton has seized on the decision and the subsequent release of detainees to accuse the government of being negligent on issues involving law and order.
The government rushed through legislation in the last parliamentary sitting to address some of the concerns Dutton raised regarding the release of detainees, not all of whom hold criminal records. Those laws, which impose strident conditions on people who have been released, are already the subject of a challenge in the court.
This next round of legislation to be introduced this week addresses the issue created when convicted terrorist Abdul Nacer Benbrika won his bid to strike down Coalition-era powers which allowed ministers to cancel Australian citizenship.
Faced with questions about the Coalition controlling the agenda, Tony Burke, the leader of the house, said the government was still “cleaning up the mess” left by Dutton.
“We’re introducing legislation because we want to get it through, and we want to get it through quickly, because there is a massive problem that has been left by Peter Dutton’s neglect,” he said.
“This isn’t something where he wasn’t warned. This isn’t an issue – on the citizenship issue – it’s not something where he didn’t have reason to know.
“Peter Dutton was told in debate at the time by the Labor party, by the now attorney general of Australia, that there was a high risk of this being unconstitutional. Peter Dutton decided to go all tough guy and say that doesn’t matter, somehow anyone who disagrees with him is soft.
“Ultimately, what Peter Dutton did was incompetent. Peter Dutton was told the risk and decided to roll the dice on national security anyway.”
The government believes its legislation will hold up to constitutional challenges as it leaves the power to decide citizenship with the judiciary rather than a minister.
Dutton has made immigration and border security two of the biggest political issues since the high court decision was handed down this month, and has kept the government on the back foot with accusations it was unprepared for the ruling.
Dutton raised questions over whether or not enough security checks had been performed on Palestinians who had been granted temporary Australian visas, while not questioning the timeline of Israeli citizens who were approved at the same time.
The home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, accused Dutton of politicising national security for his own benefit.
“Peter Dutton is a reckless politician who will do and say anything to score political points – even if it puts the national security of Australians at risk,” she said.
